Known ω3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (hereinafter abbreviated as ω3 PUFA) include α-linolenic acid, eicosapentaenoic acid (hereinafter abbreviated as EPA), and docosahexaenoic acid (hereinafter abbreviated as DHA). Since the ω3 PUFA and pharmaceutically acceptable salts and esters thereof have actions such as anti-arteriosclerosis action, platelet aggregation suppressive action, blood lipid lowering action, anti-inflammatory action, carcinostatic action, and central action, they are blended in various food products, and commercially sold in the form of health food and medical and pharmaceutical products.
Ethyl eicosapentaenoate ester (hereinafter abbreviated as EPA-E) is commercially sold in Japan as an oral therapeutic agent for ameliorating ulcer, pain, and coldness associated with arteriosclerosis obliterans as well as hyperlipidemia (product name Epadel, Mochida Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.). When EPA-E is orally administered under fasting, increase in plasma EPA concentration is smaller than the case of the oral administration after the meal conceivably because absorption of the EPA-E requires secretion of bile acid and food components as a carrier. Accordingly, Epadel is instructed to be orally administered immediately after the meal (see Non-Patent Literature 1).
However, dosage method or drug compliance has become a problem for those people not taking breakfast with the recent change in the life style, patients who can only take meals at a reduced amount, patients who can only take a fluid diet (milk, rice broth, starch gruel, egg, soup, juice, or oral nutritional supplement), patients with reduced absorption ability of the intestinal tract (for example, elderly, patients of intestinal disease, patients after intestinal surgery, terminal cancer patients, and patients taking a lipase inhibitor), or patients who are unable to take meals such as those after the cerebral infarction.
Recent attention is being drawn to the relationship of the condition where the serum triglyceride (hereafter abbreviated as TG) level is abnormally increased after meals while being normal upon fasting, or non-fasting hypertriglyceridemia with a prolongation of such abnormal increase, to coronary artery disease, and it is desired to develop an ω3 PUFA preparation rapidly absorbable even if administered before meals and capable of suppressing the increase in serum TG level after meals.
A self-emulsifying preparation which does not contain water in the preparation and which is readily dispersible and self-emulsifying when brought into contact with water has been reported (see Patent Literature 1 and Non-Patent Literature 4). This preparation contains an ω3 PUFA and fenofibrate as its effective components, ethanol, and a surfactant.
These compositions contain ethanol as a component added for improving the dissolution of the fenofibrate. However, volatilization of the ethanol is associated with the risk of capsule deformation and bubble inclusion in the capsule, damages in the quality such as capsule deformation and cracks, as well as denaturing of the content in the capsule such as cloudiness and separation. In addition, use of a preparation containing such composition should be difficult if not impossible for patients intolerable for the alcohol (ethanol).
A self-emulsifying composition containing ethanol and polyhydric alcohols in addition to the ω3 PUFA and a surfactant which is capable of forming a dispersion having a small or very small average particle size when brought in contact with water is also reported (Patent Literature 2).
With regard to self-emulsifying compositions having a low ethanol content, a self-emulsifying composition comprising an ω3 PUFA, an emulsifier having a hydrophile lipophile balance (hereinafter abbreviated as HLB) of at least 10, lecithin, and a polyhydric alcohol such as propylene glycol or glycerin which has high self-emulsifying property, oral fasting absorbability and absorption speed has been reported (Patent Literature 3).
When a composition containing a co-solvent such as a polyhydric alcohol is encapsulated in a capsule, the co-solvent moves to the capsule film to cause denaturing of the composition as well as capsule deformation due to the softening of the capsule (Patent Literature 4).
Self-emulsifying compositions, as generally containing larger amounts of emulsifiers and, accordingly, being increased in total amount, are liable to cause inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract or have a reduced content per capsule of the biologically active component dissolved in oil component (Patent Literature 5). Accordingly, the emulsifier used in the self-emulsifying composition is preferably the one which is non-toxic or less-toxic even in the case of continuous administration, and the emulsifier is preferably used at a low content.
In view of compliance, amount of the emulsifier and alcohols incorporated should be minimized also in consideration of reducing the size of the preparation because amount of the preparation that has to be taken per administration increases with the increase in the amount of the components other than the ω3 PUFA in the self-emulsifying composition since predetermined amount of the ω3 should be taken per administration.